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8 Yoga Poses You've Never Heard Of

TIred of the same old stale yoga routine? Spice things up with one or more of these lesser-known asanas. We'll tell you what body parts to warm up and engage first; you provide the sense of humor and adventure!

Baby Crow Pose

If you've got regular crow pose on lock, try baby crow, which is a forearm variation of the pose. Warning: It's harder than it looks! But it's totally doable—just give it a whirl. As with all arm balances, make sure your core is activated before attempting, and this will feel more accessible.

Frog Pose / Bhekasana

Bow pose boring these days? Try frog pose, the back bend (as opposed to the hip-opening frog pose). To find this pose with ease, make sure your shoulders, back, and psoas are super open. It's a fun one, and you can work on lifting your chest higher by strengthening your lesser-used back muscles. (Related: Yoga Poses to Improve Back Flexibility)

Funky Forearm Stand

This half forearm stand, half tripod headstand variation is referred to as "funky forearm stand." If you're tired of doing the same inversions all of the time, this pose adds some fun flavor. Do your best to lean into this one using your core to lift your legs off the ground—it's a great way to teach your core muscles how to lift into inversions rather than jumping. Open hips help here too.

Lotus Candlestick / Urdvha Padmasana

Want to test your balance? If your hips are feeling nice and open and you don't have knee or neck issues, try balancing in this lotus leg variation of candlestick pose. Make sure your hips are open hips and your core is engaged.

Horse Pose / Vatayasana

This pose isn't for anyone with sensitive knees, but it will certainly give you a few good laughs as you try to find balance. Open your hips and use padding under your knees for your first attempt, and, as with most intricate poses, do your best to keep a good sense of humor and adventure!

Ear Pressure Pose / Karnapidasana

Referred to as "ear pressure pose," this asana is interesting in that you can truly withdraw from the senses—a rare occurrence in this day and age of 24/7 technology-induced connectedness. This pose is not for anyone with neck ailments, and be sure to amply warm up your back, spine, and shoulders before heading into it. (These Yoga Poses Will Help Relieve Stress and Loosen Up Your Shoulders.)

Sleeping Yogi / Yogi Dandasana

No, all yogis do not sleep like this, but that is the name of the pose. If you're working on getting your legs behind your head, this one is often more accessible than attempting that while sitting or standing. Opening your hips, your back, and your hamstrings will do you well here.

Sometimes referred to as "roadkill pose" (can't imagine why), this hip-, back-, and quad-stretching variation of lizard meets foot behind the head pose is quite the fun one to figure out. This one is best tried at the end of a practice when your whole body is nice and warm.